You know you’re getting into niche territory if you’re browsing for jumping hour watches to amp up your collection. Along with perpetual calendars and moonphases , the jumping hour is a marvel of mechanical engineering, which is rightly reflected in the price tag. In most watches, the hour marker slowly sweeps across the dial, but with a jumping hour, it jumps to the next hour as soon as 60 minutes have passed.
“It’s a perfect blend of modernity paired with the intricacies of mechanical movements,” says Kevin Cureau from Wristcheck . One benefit is it’s perhaps even easier to tell time as it points directly to the current hour. Some models also use discs printed with digits, a bit like your trusty digital watch.
With jumping hour watches, it’s not so much about the need, but more about the want. “As a watch enthusiast who grew up in a modern era, where the world slowly transitioned from having little to no computers to everyone managing their lives through smartphones, I can personally connect to this complication and it is one of my favourites in the horology universe,” adds Cureau. Celebrities who have been spotted wearing a jumping hour watch unsurprisingly have that cool factor: Jon Hamm , aka Don Draper, with a Bell & Ross 123 Jumping Hour and Samuel L.
Jackson with a Gérald Genta Arena Bi-Retro . So take a leap into serious watch collecting with some of the most sought after jumping hour watches in the game right now. With the Royal Oak always steali.